Today, we roar back with a returning monthly feature: Jelly of the Month Club!
For the newcomers — on the first Friday of each month this year, we will be rating and reviewing a new kind of jelly, using the following systematic and rigorous approach:
1) Spread the jelly on an English muffin and eat it
2) Spread the jelly on a Ritz cracker with peanut butter and eat it
3) Spread the jelly on a knife and let our dog Layla eat it
We’re starting 2017 with a treat from a local favorite: B.E.A.R. Jam from Soergel’s Orchards in the northern suburbs of Pittsburgh!
The acronym in this jam’s name stands for “blackberry, elderberry, apple, and red raspberry”; the dark fruit lent the spread some tartness that would make it an excellent pairing for something sweet, such as a crepe, waffle, or pancake. The jam itself had a good viscosity and a pleasing color — though, when spread more thinly, it lost its purply-redness and appeared more of a dull brown.
Our pup, Layla, didn’t mind that so much.
Seriously, she freaking went H.A.M. on this B.E.A.R.
Using our scientific Jelly-Jam Quality Scale, here’s how the B.E.A.R. Jam rates:
color: 3.5 – in dollop form, it was pretty, but when spread that brownish tint just wasn’t that appealing.
flavor: 4 – it would be best served with an already-sweet pairing, but it would be perfect for breakfast.
jelly-ness: 4 – it held a nice shape out of the jar, while still being easily spreadable.
jar presentation: 4 – it was pretty cute, but would have been a 5 if it featured an actual bear on the label.
awesomeness: 3.5 – it had clever branding and versatility in how it could be used, but that brown color really limited how high this could score.
In the end, we’re happy to have this as a first jelly of the year — it was good on its own merits, but certainly won’t be the peak of the year.
“Fine, Mommy-Daddy. If you not love it, leave by my bed please-and-thanks.”
An auspicious beginning!